


Whoever Fights Monsters

by Bandgeek18



Category: Batman (Comics), DCU (Comics), Nightwing (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Batfamily Feels, Blood, Dark Nightwing, Death, My midnight ideas are the best, SO MUCH SADNESS, Very graphic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-15
Updated: 2016-12-15
Packaged: 2018-09-08 17:39:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8854723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bandgeek18/pseuds/Bandgeek18
Summary: There's only so far a person can go before they break. There's only so many tragedies a hero can endure before they become the monsters they sought to destroy.





	

**Author's Note:**

> If you didn't read the archive warnings, do it now! This is dark and gory, so don't say I didn't warn you. My girlfriend also proof-read this.

He stood in the darkness of the night, surveying the wall of the prison. He watched the guards on top who swept the area with their guns. He waited until their backs were turned to his position before he moved. He sprinted across the open area, moving with stealth and grace that came with years of practice. He pressed his back against the wall once he reached it. He waited a minute to see if he’d been spotted, but the silence from above told he hadn’t been. He counted in his head, waiting until he knew the guards' backs would be turned again. He pulled out his grappling hook and shot it up the wall. He pulled himself up and flipped up on top once he got near the top. The guards turned around and saw him as soon as his feet touched down. 

 

“Hey!” one of the guards snapped as they raised their guns. “What’re you-“ He didn’t get a chance to finish before the wing-ding was thrown and sliced his throat open. He fell to the ground with a gurgle as the other guard back up in fear. The dark intruder picked up the bloodied weapon and rushed him. Before the second guard could radio for help, the intruder cut open his carotid artery with the wing-ding. Blood splattered the side of his face, neck, and arm, but he didn’t care. He shot his grappling hook at the prison, and swung off the wall towards the main complex. He hit the ground running, stowing the hook back at his waist. He dodged gun fire sent his way and threw more wing-dings with fatal accuracy. He quickly pulled out a device he’d built for this and hacked into the lock system. The door opened and he slipped inside. 

 

Once in, he started walking calmly towards the cell block he needed. He wasn’t in a hurry or anything after all. Anytime guards crossed his path, and this happened quite frequently since the men watching the security cameras were suspicious of the man dressed in black wandering the halls of their maximum security prison, he took them down with ease. He broke their necks or stabbed them with a wing-ding. He ignored the blood that splattered his body and the long trail of bodies that was left behind him. He found the cell block he needed and once again used his device to hack the locks. He walked in and shut the door behind him. It relocked, making him confident he’d have enough time before the guards could reach him. From the corner of his eye he saw a few people peeking out of their cells. He ignored them though and made his way over to the cell he was looking for. He reached the cell and opened it. 

 

The man inside sat up. “Wha-“

 

“Quiet,” he hissed. He grabbed the man by the front of his shirt, pressing a wing-ding to the man’s throat. 

 

“Who-who are you?”

 

He peeled back his mask. “Recognize me now?”

 

The man opened his mouth. “You!” 

 

He put his mask back on and cut the man’s throat open. He didn’t even blink as the blood splattered his face and neck. He stepped back and stabbed the weapon into the man’s body, leaving it sticking out of his chest. He crushed down and dipped two finger tips into the blood. “I have a long list of people who need to be taken down. Luckily you were at the top.” He drew an ‘R’ on the man’s forehead and stood up. “I have one more stop to make here.” He left the cell, feeling free of a demon for the first time since he was a child. He took down a few more guards and headed for the other side of the prison. Guards usually hid if they saw him coming, but some still met quick ends. He went into another cell block, once again shutting the door behind him. He went straight to the cell he was looking for. 

 

The door slid open, causing the woman on the bed to stir. She sat up and blinked at him, confused. She recognized the blood covered hero standing in the doorway. 

 

“Amor,” she said with a seductive smile. “What’re you doing here?”

 

He didn’t reply as he stepped in and walked up to her. He stopped by her bed and cupped her cheek in his hand. “I’ve come to a recent…epiphany.”

 

“Oh?” She rubbed his hand, trying to sneak her fingers under his glove. 

 

“I’ve realized how…unbalanced the scales are. I’m here to balance them.”

 

“You are?” She sat up on her knees and moved closer so that there was less than an inch between them. 

 

“Yes.” He grabbed both her wrists and held them still. She looked into his eyes and something inside of her cringed at the cold gleam in them. 

 

“You're-“ Her words were cut off by his hands around her neck. She looked at him pleadingly, but he didn’t even blink as he adjusted his grip and snapped her neck. He let her lifeless body fall to the ground. He stared at it for a microsecond before leaving the cell. He could hear the guards outside the cell block scrambling to get the door open. He calmly took out three more wing-dings and an escrima stick. The door opened and the first two guards though the door went down within seconds. The next two squeezed through and slipped in the blood of the first two. He hit the first guard in the head with all his strength; watching as the guard dropped to the ground into a pool of his own blood. He did the same to the second guard and stepped over the bodies. He dodged bullets that were being shot at him and threw a wing-ding. It took out two more guards while he snapped the necks of another two. He casually picked up his weapons as the other guards retreated. He walked calmly out of the prison, guards not daring to go near him. Once he got outside he used his grappling hook to get back over the wall. He knew they would probably call the League, but he wasn’t worried. 

 

‘They’ll need some time to process and believe it,’ he thought as he returned to where he left his bike. Nightwing sighed as he drove back towards Blüdhaven. ‘I need some more wingdings for the next stop.’

 

— — 

 

The guards at Arkham Asylum weren’t considered to be the best at their jobs. The constant string of break-outs every month was proof enough of that. For a maximum security psychological institution it was less secure than most people preferred it. Tonight though, Nightwing was actually kind of glad the security was slightly better than that of Gotham Academy. He could theoretically break into any prison he needed to, but for what he had planned, he didn’t want to spend the whole night trying to get in. He scaled the wall surrounding the institution with ease and used his grapple hook to get up into the air. The top floors were mostly administrative, so they typically had windows. He crashed through the window, landing on the desk of the on-call psychiatrist. The man let out a cry of surprise. He stood up and composed himself once he realized who the crouched figure was. 

 

“I think that’s a little dramatic, Nightwing,” he said evenly. “No one’s escaped yet this month, why are you here?”

 

“Setting things right,” Nightwing answered. Before the doctor could ask when he meant NIghtwing shocked him with one of his escrima sticks. He took out a wing-ding and slit the doctor’s throat. He exited the room and made his way into the next one. Most of the offices were empty, but a few had doctors working late or working the night shift. He made quick work of them and any guards who happened to cross his path. He moved down to the next floor. He opened the first cell, startling the insane man inside out of bed. The man blinked in confusion at the vigilante. Before he could ask though, Nightwing smashed his head into the cement wall. He dropped the body to the floor and moved on to the next cell. As he worked his way down the hall the inmates started calling for the guards. The few who came met bloody ends with wing-dings before they could so much as raise their weapons. NIghtwing moved methodically, yet efficiently through the building. As he did though, he felt the unwanted memories bombarding his brain. Feet kicking him and hands grabbing him. His muscles feeling lethargic and heavy. Shouldn’t be here. Shouldn’t be here. Strapped down to his bed, bellowing for help. Someone. Anyone. He shook his head and literally threw the body he was holding into the wall again. His heart pounded in fearful remembrance as he passed a room he knew all to well. He opened the door and gabbed the man in the bed by the throat. He held him against the wall as more memories snuck in. A gag in his mouth. Feeling tired, so tired. Kicking and punching. He had to fight. Fear. So afraid of their plans. Where was Batman? Where was Bruce?! He snarled and slit the man’s throat. He dropped the body back onto the bed and left the room. 

 

He finally made it to the last floor. He paused for a moment, mind going over what he was about to do. He almost smiled to himself as he opened the first door. Penguin was still half-asleep, so it was only too easy for NIghtwing to slice his neck open. Next he found Poison Ivy, who smiled at him right before NIghtwing grabbed her arm and threw her into the wall with all his strength. She was dazed and he bashed her head into the wall until it was bleeding freely. He moved on to Two-Face, who backed away from him in fear. 

 

“H-how about we play game?” he asked NIghtwing, pulling his coin out of his pocket. He yelped in fear when the vigilante pinned him against the wall. 

 

“I’m done playing your games,” NIghtwing hissed. “I’m done playing all your games.”

 

“B-Bats doesn’t like killing! He-he won’t let you!”

 

“Batman only intervenes when he wants to. Trust me, he’s not coming.” Nightwing electrocuted Two Face with his escrima sticks, the brought both of them down on the villains mutilated face with all his strength. Two Face let out a gargled grunt before dropping to the ground. Nightwing left and found Harley Quinn next. He snuck up behind Joker’s partner and snapped her neck. He wiped at his bangs in an annoyed fashion. Blood was dripping from them into his eyes. He moved on, one by one killing the villains from Gotham’s rogue gallery. He finally stopped in front of the last cell in the hall. He opened the door and turned on the light. 

 

“Ahahaha,” Joker chuckled from where he sat on the floor. “I heard you coming Bird Boy.” Nightwing didn’t say anything as he approached the clown. He grabbed Joker by the collar of his shirt and held him against the wall. “Whatever it was, tells Bats I didn’t do it.” He stared uncertainly at Nightwing’s cold glare. “Aren’t you usually more talkative? Cat Woman got your-“ He stopped when NIghtwing’s hand was suddenly smothering his wind pipe. 

 

“Stop. Talking.” NIghtwing quickly removed his hand, electrocuted the clown, and put his hand back. “I’ve had a lot of time to think recently. Not just think though. Remember too. Remembering everything. Of course then I started asking questions. You want to know what conclusion I came to?” He electrocuted the clown again. “That you were right. After all these years, you were right. There is something insane abut this world. So insane you just have to laugh.” He electrocuted him again, leaving the escrima stick on him for a little bit longer each time. “But I’m to tired to laugh. Too broken inside. You know how sad it is when you’re so dead inside that even the instinct of laughter is impossible?” More electrocution. “So instead of laughing, I’ve decided to to se things right. Which is why I’m here. You and your kind tip the scales in your favor and I’m here to tip them back.” He zapped Joker on the neck, getting a squeal of pain from he psychotic clown. Then he saw something he never thought he’d see from the Joker. Fear. A glimmer of fear appeared in his eyes and his trademark smile slipped form his lips. Nightwing frowned in confusion. “Joker, why so serious?” He dropped the escrima stick and put his other hand on the Joker’s throat. Too late the villain realized what he was doing. NIghtwing slowly and deliberately increased the pressure on Joker’s windpipe. The clown bucked and clawed at the vigilante’s arms, but Nightwing held on. He squeezed harder as the life slowly left Joker’s eyes. He finally went limp in Nightwing’s hands. He stepped back and let the Joker fell to the ground like a broken puppet. NIghteing stared down at his lifeless body for a second. A small smile twitched at his lips. “Asterous.”

 

He noticed something on the ground and knelt down to pick it up. It was one of Joker’s calling cads. He held on to it as he left the cell. It was still a few hours until dawn. He had a little bit before the next shift of guards and doctors came. By then he’d be back home in Blüdhaven, setting things right there. His foot steps echoed on the dead silence of the hall. The blood drying on his skin was itching a little. After this it wouldn't take long for Batman to figure out his plan. He wasn’t worried. Batman’s time would come. For now though, Nightwing had finished this stop earlier than expected. He decided to head to Gotham and see a friend. He’d throw Batman and company a bone. ‘Let them come,’ he thought grimly has he mounted his bike, Joker card tucked into his glove. ‘They’re not gong to stop me.’

 

— — 

 

There was a reason Red Hood tried to avoid seeing his…”family”….while on patrol. His truce with the other Bats could get strained at best when he worked with them, so they generally stayed out of his neighborhood and off the streets he frequented. Which is why he was a little annoyed when he saw Nightwing standing on the roof of a building in the middle of his territory. It was obvious his older brother was waiting of him, since he didn’t move and was gazing out over the city. Like he was lost in thought or something. Red Hood swung down to meet him, a snarky insult on his tongue as he approached the older crime fighter. Luckily, he took in the whole situation before he said anything. Nightwing was standing still. Very still. But that wasn’t concerning. The concerning part was that he was covered in blood. His black suit was splattered with crimson red, covering small portions of the blue bird on his chest. It was even in his hair and on his face; covering some of his mask. 

 

“Holy shit! What the fuck happened you you?!” he demanded. His eyes searched Nightwing’s body for any injuries, but he was having a hard time locating one. His suit wasn’t torn and he was standing like he felt perfectly healthy. 

 

“I was busy tonight,” Nightwing responded. 

 

“I can see that.” Red Hood circled his brother. He stopped in his tracks and his blood ran cold when he saw Nightwing’s escrima sticks. They were covered in blood. The red substance had covered most of the top half of the weapons. Nightwing was covered in blood. But he wasn’t injured. His weapons were also covered in blood. Red Hood’s heart started jackhammering against his ribs. “Nightwing….what did you do?”

 

“I’m doing what needs to be done.” 

 

Red Hood’s head snapped back in his direction. His hand fell to one of his guns. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

 

Nightwing turned around and looked at him. “You want to know something funny? I understand Joker.” Red Hood drew his gun with shaking hands. “He was right you know.”

 

“Of course Joker is behind this,” Red Hood muttered. “When I get my hands on that clown-“

 

“Don’t bother.”

 

“What do you mean….don’t bother?” Nightwing shrugged and turned away. Hood’s mind was starting to put some pieces together and he didn’t like the picture it was revealing. “Nightwing, I’m going to ask again, and you’d better answer. What the fuck did you do?!”

 

“What needs to be done. I’m on a mission. I’m restoring balance to the world.”

 

“Balance?”

 

“Joker. Poison Ivy. Two Face. Blockbuster. Tony Zucco. They tip the scales in their favor. Do you know what the scales that lady liberty holds represents? Fairness. Equality. I’ve realized now that those scales have been tipped in favor of the bad guys for too long. I’ve realized the Joker was right. He was always right. This world makes no sense. But I’m going to fix that.” He turned around and tossed something to Red Hood’s feet. It landed with a soft swish. Hood backed up a step. One of Joker’s cards. His mouth fell open in shock, but his helmet hid it. 

 

“You-you didn’t-“ No. Nightwing wouldn’t. He was the golden boy. The prodigal son. There was no way in hell he would cross that line. No god damn way he’d break the Bat’s one rule. “Nightwing tell me you didn’t.”

 

Nightwing simply looked him in the eye and Red Hood felt his blood pressure drop. His older brother’s blood covered eyes were cold. They conveyed none of the warmth usually associated with him. “You need to get out of Gotham. Tell Red Robin and Robin to get out too.”

 

“Why?”

 

“This is between me and B. I don’t want the rest of you caught in the crossfire. Stay out of my way and stay safe.” He walked past Red Hood who was unable to stop him. The denial of the situation was keeping him rooted in place. This wasn’t his brother. There had to be an explanation. Fear gas. Clone. Mind control. Anything. He didn’t want it to be true. He knelt down and picked up the card. He doubted anyone wanted the Joker dead more than him. But Nightwing would never… He put the card in his pocket. He needed to find Batman. 

 

— — 

 

After talking with his younger brother, Nightwing went home. He looked over the city of Blüdhaven in the early morning light. He nodded to himself and swung down onto the street. He remounted his bike and drove through the city. ‘So much corruption,’ he thought in disgust. ‘So much suffering and misery.’ He soon entered his neighborhood of interest. He got off and approached one of the derelict houses. He kicked the door in, much to the surprise of the drug dealer sleeping n the couch. 

 

“What the f-“ His last word came out as a gurgle as the wing-ding sliced his trachea open. He collapsed as two more came funding down the stairs. The first met a similar fate as his friend. The second back up a step, but Nightwing was faster. He grabbed the dealer by the neck and pushed him against the stairs. He carefully clicked a hidden button on his escrima stick he never used. He pushed the stick into the man’s chest and released a deadly amount of volts into his body. He held it there for a minute before stopping. His lip curled in disgust at the smell. He stopped back and search date rest of the house. He didn’t find anyone else and left. He made his way through the neighborhood in this manner. He knew the location of every major drug dealer int he city. He’d always known so much about them. Except how to keep track of the evidence to convict them when he was a cop. He killed everyone he found in the houses with efficiency, but he didn’t hurry. He was in no rush. Batman had to know by now, but that didn’t bother Nightwing. The big bad bat would need some time to process what was happening. Nightwing turned his bike towards the hangout of one of the most notorious gangs in the city. ‘I’ll give him that time,’ he reasoned as he drove. ‘I’ve always been generous with Bruce. Why should that change now?’

 

The gang members were more awake than most of the drug dealers had been, so they were quicker to shoot. But Nightwing dodged the bullets with ease and took them down. He walked through puddles of the blood completely unfazed. He took out two more guards and walked into the room of one of the gang leaders. He was sitting up in bed with what Nightwing assumed was his girlfriend. The vigilante simply electrocuted the gang leader before he could reach his gun. He ignored the horrified screams of the woman and threw a wing-ding in her direction to silence her. He left the house, but he didn’t shut the door. He wanted the bodies to be found. He wanted news to spread fast. He was saving Blüdhaven from itself. He kicked in the door of the next hide out and found the gang members in the living room, watching tv. 

 

“Who the hell-“ Nightwing pounced and smashed both his escrima sticks into the first guys’ head. The second one pulled his gun, but Nightwing disarmed him. He pressed his escrima sticks into the man’s neck and electrocuted him. He moved into the next room and found a guy bagging drugs. He rushed the guy and snapped his neck. He came across two more guys, both of whom met their bloody ends with his wing-dings. He kept going. Every time he heard the explosion, people dying, innocent people whose only crime had been living near him, he hit harder. He could hear the guns going off as anyone within a 5 foot radius dropped dead. He heard children crying after he’d given them the news. Mothers and fathers sobbing in hopelessness. He cut a little deeper. This city had stolen so much. Taken more than anyone could stand. ‘But not anymore,’ NIghtwing reminded himself as another gangster dropped to the ground. He wiped the blood sway from his mouth. “I’m taking this city back.”

 

— — 

 

Batman walked into the prison, completely ignoring the police around him. He walked down the empty halls towards the first crime scene. Well…the one inside a cell. The whole place was a crime scene. Bodies of guards littered the ground every few feet. Their lifeless eyes stared up at him as he passed. Whoever had done this was good. Very good. Well trained. Efficient. Lethal. His mind was already running through the possible candidates as he walked into the cell block. The women backed away from the doors of their cells in fear. Batman filed away the odd behavior. He stepped into the cell. “Commissioner,” he said. 

 

“Morning Batman,” Gordon mumbled. “I’d say ‘good morning’ but there’s nothing good about it.”

 

Batman looked around the cell. Nothing seemed put of place. “Her neck was snapped.”

 

Gordon nodded. “Catalina Flores. Charged with murder.”

 

“Who’d she kill?”

 

“Blockbuster. Gangster from Blüdhven.” The commissioner gave Batman a strange look. “Shouldn’t you already know this?”

 

“Why should I?”

 

“It was Nightwing who brought her in.”

 

Oh. That was news to him. “I”ll ask him about the case then. He might have an idea on who would want her dead.”

 

“Some member of the gang I’m sure,” Gordon muttered as he stood up. “Come on, the second body’s this way.” Batman gave the body one last look. There was something odd about this. He turned and followed the Commissioner. “I should say the first body really, since estimated time of death is before the other one. But the forensic guys wouldn’t let me in yet.”

 

“Why not?”

 

“The blood.” They entered the cell and Batman’s internal alarms bells were going off instantly. “And here we have-“

 

“Tony Zucco,” Batman said, recognizing the mod boss immediately. 

 

“Yes. As you can see someone-“ Gordon stopped as Batman pushed him aside. The Dark Knight knelt down at pulled out the weapon from Zucco's chest. ‘One of Nightwing’s weapons.’ His eyes traveled to Zucco’s face and his eyes narrowed. ‘R.’ He stood up. ‘Someone knows Nightwing’s identity. They’re taking out people who’ve been in contact with him.’ He needed to talk to his oldest son right now. Unfortunately, it seemed that the universe was working against him, not that it ever stopped. “Batman. I just got a call from the station. Someone broke into Arkham.”

 

“Broke in?”

 

“Yes, in. Not out. They wouldn’t specify but suggested you might want to see it.”

 

Batman nodded and swept out of the cell. His mind was trying to solve the puzzle. ‘Two villains involved with Nightwing killed on the same night and now someone broke into Arkham Asylum.’ Batman didn’t believe in coincidences. It was obvious to him someone was going after Nightwing’s adversaries. The crazies in Arkham weren’t as concerned with him as they were with Batman, but they still tried to kill him. They’d tried to kill him plenty of times when he was Robin. ‘But why?’ he wondered. ‘Why would someone do this?’ They had to be really good to have figured out Nightwing’s secret identity and stolen some of his weapons. ‘And if they know who Nightwing is, they probably know who the rest of us are.’ He drove faster towards the Asylum. Once he arrived, he walked in and was met with a sight he wasn’t expecting. Guards bodies littered the floor every few feet. It was eerily similar to the prison. He swept down the hall towards the block that held the most dangerous criminals. The door to the hall was already open. He stepped in and inspected the first cell. 

 

Poison Ivy was propped against the wall, vacant eyes staring out at nothing. The smear of blood on the wall behind her as well as the crimson that matted the back of her hair told him it had been blunt force trauma. He moved on to the next one. Penguin was still in his bed. His throat had been cut and was still dripping onto the floor. Batman checked the next cell. Riddler was lying in the middle of the floor. Someone had gagged him before snapping his neck. Harley’s neck had been snapped as well. Two Face’s face was covered in blood and his skull was very clearly cracked open. Batman moved faster. He stopped outside Joker’s cell. He walked in and his mouth tightened. The Clown Prince of Crime was lying completely still. His vacant eyes still seemed to follow Batman as he examined the body. Whoever had done this had put significantly more effort into Joker’s death. Under the pale skin he could just barely see the bruises shaped like finger tips. Strangled. ‘Red Hood,’ was his first thought. It was the obvious answer. His wayward son was the one with a vendetta and loose morals. But something didn’t feel right. First of all, the same person who attacked the prison was most likely the same person who attacked Arkham. No one thus far had been taken out with guns. Red Hood’s preferred method of dealing with criminals involved guns. There was also the fact that Red Hood just…wasn’t this good. He was good, like anyone who’d trained under Batman, but the level of skill required to commit both these crimes, breaking into two maximum security facilities, kill dozens of people in each, and escape, Batman knew of only a handful of people that could accomplish it. Jason was skilled, but he wasn’t skilled enough to have done this. But if it wasn’t Jason, then who? Who could have a connection to his family and have enough anger to go on a killing spree like this? He left the cell, feeling like there were more questions than answers in this case. 

 

“Joker is dead,” he told the Commissioner. 

 

Gordon nodded. “They’re all dead.”

 

“Maybe one of the surviving guards saw something-“

 

“Batman. They’re all dead. Everyone. The on-call doctors and nurses. The guards. The other inmates, not just our frequent break-outs down here. Every person in this facility is dead.”

 

It took a lot to surprise Batman, but this more than qualified. “They’re all dead.”

 

Gordon nodded. Batman could feel how nervous this made the Commissioner. “I’ve never seen anything like this. Which is saying a lot. Who could’ve done this?”

 

“I don’t know.” Batman looked at one of the security cameras on the ceiling. “But I’m going to find out.” He walked to the security surveillance room and turned on his comm. “Red Robin, come to the Bat Cave. Tell Nightwing and Red Hood to come too.” 

 

“I just got home,” Red Robin muttered. “What’s going on Batman?”

 

“Unclear at this time. I’ll brief the four of you at the Cave.”

 

“Alright.” 

 

Batman directly transferred the footage from the asylum camera to his computer. He left the asylum and contacted the Bat cave as soon as he was in the Bat mobile. “Robin.”

 

“Yes Batman?” Robin replied. 

 

“Go straight back to the cave.”

 

“How did you-“

 

“Never mind! Go back now! Nightwing, Red Robin, and Red Hood will be there soon.”

 

“What’s going on?”

 

Batman thought about the carnage he’d just seen. “I’m not completely sure.” He tore through the streets of Gotham at astounding speeds. His instinct was telling him that this was bad. Really bad. He made it home in record time and jumped out of the Bat mobile. “Where’s Nightwing and Red Hood?!” he demanded. 

 

“Nightwing isn’t answering and god only knows with Red Hood,” Red Robin said. He took off his mask. “Bruce, what’s going on?”

 

“Arkham Asylum was attacked,” Bruce explained as he sat down at the Bat computer. He uploaded the footage he’d taken. 

 

“Attacked?” Damian asked. “Who escaped?”

 

“No one. Everyone inside was killed.”

 

Both boys blinked. “Everyone?!” Tim asked. “How many people is everyone?”

 

“I would think that part would be self-explanatory,” Damian said. “Even to someone as dim as yourself Drake.”

 

“Knock it off!” Bruce snapped. “This is no time to be fighting amongst ourselves.” 

 

Tim and Damian nodded. They crowded around as Bruce went through the footage. All three sets of eyes surveyed the footage. He fast forwarded to a few hours pervious. They watched curiously. A man dressed in black, well black and blood, walked into the hall. His back was to the camera, so it was impossible to tell his identity. Bruce changed to another angle. They re-watched the footage and he paused as soon as the intruder was on screen. His heart stopped. The face was hard to see under the blood and the mask, but the blue bird on his chest was unmistakeable. “No.”

 

Damian stiffened. “This is a trick,” he snarled. “Perhaps a vapor of Scarecrow’s.”

 

“Security footage can be faked,” Tim said, voice shaking. “It can be faked. This-this doesn’t mean anything.”

 

“It’s not real. It’s not.”

 

“It is,” Red Hood said from behind them. He took his helmet off and pulled out the card Nightwing had given him. “I-I don’t completely understand what he’s done, but he did it.” He set the card down in front of the other three.

 

“Where did you get that?” Bruce asked in a whisper. 

 

“Nightwing gave it to me.”

 

“You saw him?!” Tim asked sharply. 

 

Jason nodded. “We….talked. He’s….Bruce there’s something not right about him.”

 

“Like he’s being controlled or….”

 

“Like he’s….snapped. He sounds crazy. He kept saying how the Joker made sense and he finally understood him. He said he was resorting balance to the scales or some bullshit like that.” He clenched his fist. “He sounds insane.”

 

No. No this wasn’t true. Bruce didn’t want it to be. Dick would never…. He wasn’t capable…. ‘But he is,’ the rational part of Bruce argued. ‘He fits perfectly. He knows the layout of both places. He’s highly skilled in stealth and fighting. He had a reason to want them dead.’ 

 

“No!” Bruce snapped. “It can’t be…”

 

“It is,” Jason said, not unkindly. “Bruce I know you don’t want to believe it but-“ He stopped as an alert popped up n the screen. “Great, more good news.”

 

“I can’t imagine how this gets worse,” Tim muttered as Bruce checked the alert. They were directed to a live feed of the Blüdhaven news. 

 

“-are unsure of how many victims are dead at this time,” the reporter was saying. "However, witnesses are saying the murders were committed by none other than NIghtwing.” 

 

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees. Damian shot Tim a glare. “You just had to say it Drake.”

 

Tim didn’t snap back. He couldn’t. His eyes were frozen to the screen as he watched shaking footage someone shot on a cell phone. A man ran out of a house and stopped suddenly. He dropped to the ground with a wing-ding in his back. Nightwing emerged from the house. Tim almost fainted at the sight of his older brother. Nightwing calmly approached the man and pulled out the wing-ding. He looked up and saw the person holding the phone. Tim shook his head. ‘No. No Dick don’t-‘ Nightwing threw the wing-ding as the camera backed up. It disappeared and the camera fell to the ground. Blood slowly spread on screen. NIghtwing walked over and picked up his wing-ding. He also picked up the phone, looked directly into the camera, then dropped it and crushed it under his foot. No one in the room spoke. 

 

“Jesus fucking christ,” Jason whispered. Bruce didn’t reprimand him for swearing. 

 

“Grayson….?” Damian breathed, his voice shaking. 

 

“Good heavens,” Alfred breathed making them jump. 

 

Bruce quickly turned the footage off. He hit a button that would call the core League members to the Watchtower. “You three go to the zeta tube and zeta to the Watchtower.”

 

“The Watchtower?!” Tim asked. “Why?!”

 

“Just do it!” The three boys pulled on their masks and helmet respectively. “Alfred, once we’re gone put the Batcave on lockdown.”

 

“Are you sure Master Bruce?” 

 

“Yes. If anything moves in here…” He paused. “shoot it.”

 

“Master Bruce!”

 

“Just do it!” He didn’t mean to snap, but his nerves were frayed and he didn’t really care. “If we need to get to you we’ll send the Boy Scout.” Alfred nodded. “And…don’t watch the news.” He stood up and moved as mechanically as possible towards the zeta tube. Robin and Red Robin went through and Batman gave his authorization for Red Hood to get through. He followed his sons, wishing somehow the trip was longer. He didn’t know what words to use to tell the League about this. If he said it out loud…this was going to be real. He didn’t want it to be real. People actually stepped out of his way as he moved to the front of the group. He led his sons towards the League’s meeting room. He walked in and sat down. Red Robin, Robin, and Red Hood stood off to the side. Batman sat perfectly still and didn’t say anything. He ignored all questions about what was going on. He ignored pointed questions about what his sons were doing there, especially Red Hood. He waited until everyone had arrived and sat down. 

 

“Batman…” Superman said carefully. “Is everything ok?”

 

Batman didn’t answer. He brought up stills from the Arkham massacre. “Arkham Asylum was attacked early this morning,” he said, voice quaking slightly. “Every inmate, doctor, and guard was killed. Two inmates and over two dozens guards were also killed in a maximum security prison.”

 

“What two?” Green Arrow asked. 

 

“Tony Zucco-“ A couple of gasps. “And a former Blüdhaven vigilante named Catalina Flores.” He could tell Green Arrow and Superman were starting to put the pieces together. So was Flash, but he was the only one smart enough, or possibly dumb enough, to vocalize it. 

 

“Where’s Nightwing?” Flash asked. “Batman where’s Nightwing?!”

 

“Nightiwng….Nightwing is-“ He couldn’t say it. Instead he brought up the news footage from Blüdhaven earlier. He didn’t say anything as the League members watched. Horror dawned slowly on their faces. Green Arrow let out a string of curses under his breath. Batman turned the footage off. His fist tightened. 

 

“Mind control,” Green Lantern suggested hopefully. 

 

Batman shook his head. “I-I don’t think so.”

 

“Don’t give up hope,” Superman said. “There has to be an explanation-“

 

“God dammit Clark!” He banged his first on the table, causing everyone to freeze. “It’s him! He’s the one doing it!” He felt something inside him break. Like he was betraying his oldest. “He’s a mass murderer.” One of the boys let out a whimper. 

 

“Uh…maybe they should stand outside?” Flash suggested. 

 

“No. They stay.”

 

“Batman-“

 

“They stay here where I can see them!” Flash nodded eagerly. “We have to do… something.”

 

Everyone nodded slowly. “We will,” Superman assured him. 

 

“Do what?” Green Arrow asked. “Lock him up? He’s fucking Nightwing! What prison can hold him?! Arkham? That place couldn’t even hold the Joker!”

 

“I’ll….think of something….” Batman whispered. 

 

“First we need to figure out what he’s planning,” Wonder Woman said, all business. 

 

“How do we know he has a plan?” Martin Manhunter asked. 

 

“He’s Nightwing, of course he’ll have a plan.”

 

“He’s going after people who’ve wronged him,” Batman explained. Everyone looked at him. “Tony Zucco, most of Arkham. The drug dealers and gangs he faced as a cop. They’ve all crossed him at some point.”

 

“Just people who’ve wrong him?” Aquaman asked. 

 

“Tone much?” Black Canary replied. 

 

“Well what does he consider crossed? Kaldur’ahm leaving the team? Wally leaving the team? Artemis leaving them?” His words were staring to make some Leaguers nervous. “Red Arrow actually betraying the League? Where is he drawing the line at “crossed"?"

 

“Everyone head back to the planet,” Superman decided. “NIghtwing is going after people who’ve wronged him. It’s our job to protect people. Pick a major villain and watch them. If they’ve crossed Nightwing I want a Leaguer watching their every move. You should also contact your former proteges. They deserve to know and….they should hear it from us. If possible they should come up to the Watchtower for safety.”

 

“I shall inform Kaldur’ahm to stay in Atlantis,” Aquaman said. “Nightwing cannot reach him there.” 

 

“Alright. Watch your backs and stay in contact with each other at all times. Also no Team missions until further notice."

 

Everyone nodded and stood up. All but Superman and the bat brothers left the room. 

 

“How am I going to tell Wally?” Barry murmured sadly, dragging his feet and dreading the coming conversation.

 

The Man of Steel put a hand on the Dark Knight’s shoulder. “Bruce….”

 

“Don’t.”

 

”I’m sorry.”

 

“I said don’t.”

 

“This isn’t your fault.” He looked at the boys. “You three need to stay here. We don’t know if Nightwing will come after the Bat family.”

 

“But-“ Robin began, but Red Hood put his hand over the boy’s mouth. 

 

“We stay for now,” he said. 

 

Superman nodded. ‘God help us all,’ he thought, trying his best not to panic. ‘God help us.’

 

— — 

 

It was about noon when Nightwing decided he’d made enough of a dent in the gang population of Blüdhaven. ‘They’re not the only ones who’ve contributed to the problem,’ he decided. He wandered down the street, back to where he left his bike. He got on and headed downtown. He certainly drew a lot of heads and odd looks as he drove. He stopped outside the first precinct and got off. ‘The police have let the gangs and drugs and blood money run this city for too long.’ He felt someone put a hand on his shoulder. He turned his head slowly and looked at the man. He didn’t know the man, but unknown to him he’d once saved this man from a mugging. 

 

“Nightwing, are you ok?” the man asked. Nightwing didn’t say anything. He just slipped out a wing-ding a cut the man’s throat. He shoved the body away as he fell. He turned back towards a sound that he’d heard. He froze when he saw the little boy staring at him in terror. He lowered his arm. 

 

“Go!” he snarled. The kid ran off and Nightiwing proceeded inside the station. He snuck around the building, systematically sealing off all the exits. He made sure so much as a window couldn't open. He walked in, making a beeline for the bullpen. He stood in the door until every cop in the room was watching him. 

 

“You!” one of them snarled he reached for his gun, but a wing-ding sliced his neck open before he could reach it. 

 

“Me.” NIghtwing disarmed a cop who’d dared to approach him. He took the gun and shot two more in the head. “Anyone else? Didn’t think so.”

 

“You got a lot of nerve coming in here!” one of them spat. “All those times you looked down on us-“ Nightiwng shot him in the throat. He twirled the gun idly in his hands. He shot another cop in the head. A few opened fire and he dove down. The bullets ricocheted around him, but none of them their mark. Not that he found that surprising. ‘They are cops after all.’ Ignoring the bitter irony of that thought, and the possible hypocrisy, he started shooting back. HIs shots were a lot more true and hit the targets. He took mostly head shots, not wanting to give them a chance for survival. A bullet or two hit his kevlar, but he barely felt a thing. He jumped up and flipped onto a desk. With the higher ground he took quicker shots. a few cops had abandoned their weapons and attempted to escape the building. Unfortunately for them they were met with jammed doors and windows. A few tired to break the windows while most just attempted to hide anywhere in the building they could. 

 

Meanwhile, back in the bullpen, Nightwing hopped down off the desk. He walked around the empty space, stepping lightly through the pools of blood. He checked all the bodies, shooting them again in the head. He walked leisurely as he emptied the clip in the gun. He grabbed a new one, unfazed by the blood on the handle, and went to find the ones who’d hidden. He started humming a lullaby his mom used to sing to him when he was little. He found a cop hiding in a closet and shot him in the chest. He found two more in the bathroom and shot each of them in the head. He kept humming the song on a loop as he slowly tracked down all the cops in the building. When he made it down to the holding cells he discovered there was a few prisoners. He shot them as well, not really caring what they were arrested for. They were on the wrong side, tipping the scales in the wrong direction. He was on his way to the roof when he found anther cop, a rookie, hiding under a table. Nightwing grabbed his shirt and pulled him out. The man let out a frightened squeak. He was visibly shaking as Nightwing bright the gun to his temple. 

 

“P-please…” the young man stammered. His wide eyes were filling with tears. “Please I beg of you…. I-I have a family….”

 

Nightwing’s eyes narrowed. “So did I.” He shot the young cop, spraying blood and tissue on his own face. He licked his lips to clean them and dropped the body to the ground. He continued up to the roof, easily undoing what he’d done to block the door. He walked to the edge and looked out over the city. There was a crowd gathering around the man he’d killed outside the police station. Nightwing raised the gun and fired down at the crowd. He emptied the clip as people ran screaming. He saw bodies drop, but he didn’t care if they were dead or not. He threw the now useless gun onto the roof and pulled out his grappling hook. He fired it and took off over the city. As he moved effortlessly over the rooftops, people screamed and ran when they saw him. It was a sharp contrast to when they used to smile when seeing him go by. He made it to the next precinct and started his ritual of blocking all the exits. Luckily the precincts were notoriously windowless, so his job wasn't that hard. He let himself in on the roof. He came down, taking down the first two cops he saw with wing-dings. He took their guns and proceeded down toward the bullpen. He shot cops as he saw them, making sure to take kill shot every time. He made it down to the bullpen and every cop pulled a gun on him. 

 

“What’re you doing here?!” one of them demanded. Nightwing didn’t answer. He could tell his appearance was was thrown them off. Some of them were already edging themselves away. “What’re you doing here?!”

 

“I’m here to clean up Blüdhaven.” He jumped up, flipping over the bullets. He shot at them as he flipped and landed on a desk. He constantly dodged their shots as he took them out one by one. Most of them smartly ditched the guns and ran for the doors. This bullpen emptied faster than the first one had. He hopped down off the desk and crouched next to the cop who’d been questioning him. “All I ever wanted to do was clean up Blüdhaven.” He sighed sadly as memories of himself as both a young officer and solo hero played in his mind. His hand started shaking as other, less desirable memories, blended into those. His sad face morphed into a demonic snarl and he shot the already dead cop twice more in the face. He stood up and left the bullpen, once again looking for those who’d tried to escape. Since they’d been unable to get out they’d taken to hiding, so NIghtwing had to hunt them down ether one by one or in small groups. He shot two who’d hidden in a closet and shot someone who hid under a desk. He didn’t rush, there was no way they could get out. He started humming again as he calmly shot a rookie in the neck. The younger cops were weeping and begging while the older ones just stared in fear; frozen by their terror. 

 

“Y-You don’t want to do this,” said a detective as he and the four others who were backing into a corner. “You-you’re a hero.” 

 

Nightwing shot him. “I am. Which is why I’m doing this. I’m saving this city.” He shot two more and the last two wondered what their chances were that they could get past him. 

 

“W-why? W-we’re on the same side!” 

 

“No. We’re not.” Nightwing shot one of them and moved closer to the last one. 

 

“P-please.” The man scrunched himself up on the floor. “Please don’t!” Nightwing didn’t even blink as he shot the man. The body jerked, then dropped against the corner. Nightwing threw the gun aside and went up to the roof. He pulled out his grappling hook, but a sudden blast of wind stopped him in his tracks. He blinked at the red suit that appeared in front of him. 

 

Wally’s mouth opened in shock when he saw his friend’s state. It was the first time Nightwing had ever seen him speechless. “Nightwing….what’re you…..” He saw the tissue in Nightwing’s hair. His stomach plummeted and he wanted to throw up. “What did you do?”

 

“What has to be done.”

 

Wally took an unconscious step back. “Nightwing….Dick….how…. who’s making you do this?! Tell me and we can stop it!”

 

“Only one person is responsible for what’s happening. And he’s probably hiding from me on the Watchtower.”

 

“Dick….” Wally reached his hand out, then jerked it back when a wing-ding almost sliced it off. 

 

“Leave.”

 

“Dick-“

 

“Get out of my city!” Wally avoided another wing-ding. He stared pleadingly at his friend. 

 

“Please let me help you. We…we can get you help-“

 

“I don’t need help! I don’t need anymore’s help!”

 

“Dick-“

 

“GET OUT!”

 

Wally ran off the building. Nightwing watched him leave in a streak of red. He picked up his wing-dings and put them back. He grabbed his grappling hook swung off the building. He still had a few hours until he had to go to Gotham. 

 

— Whoever Fights Monsters — 

 

Damian sat miserably between Tim and Jason as the Watchtower was basically in panic around them. For all of everyone’s judgement of Batman having contingency plans for the other members of the Justice League, no one knew what to do with his oldest son going rogue. He watched as Superman and Wonder Woman tried to pry information from Batman to figure out what Nightwing might do. Flash breezed in, almost knocking everyone over in his rush. “T-turn on the news!” he gasped. 

 

“Are you out of breath?” Wonder Woman asked in disbelief. 

 

“News!” 

 

Batman pulled up a feed of the Blüdhaven news. A reporter was standing outside the first precinct of the Blüdhaven police. “Sources say all the officers in the building area dead-“

 

“Dear god no….” Tim whispered, mind already calculating the loss of life. 

 

The reporter stopped and put her hand to her ear. “I’m just receiving word that another two precincts in Blüdhaven have been hit like this one-“

 

“Oh fuck no….” Jason whispered, holding his head with his hands. He’d long ago taken his helmet off. 

 

“How many-“ Superman began as he turned off the video. 

 

“Too many,” Batman answered in a strained voice. 

 

“We have to intervene,” Wonder Woman said. Another breeze blew into the room and Wally stopped, also apparently out of breath. 

 

“Where’ve you been?!” Barry demanded. “You just ran off and-“

 

“I went to Blüdhaven,” Wally said. 

 

“What?” Superman asked in shock. 

 

“Why?!” Barry demanded. 

 

“Because he’s my friend!” Wally snapped. “He’s my friend and I had to try!”

 

“Try what?! Dying?!”

 

“He wouldn’t kill me! He’d never-“

 

“I think we’ve crossed the line of things Nightwing would never do,” Wonder Woman pointed out. 

 

“What happened?” Tim asked. Everyone looked at the three boys like they’d forgotten they were there. “When you….saw him. What happened?”

 

Wally shifted uncomfortably. “I didn’t even recognize him,” he said quietly. “He was just….covered in blood and…” He took a breath. “He sounded so….unlike himself…. He was cold and angry.” He looked at Batman. “What happened to him?” 

 

Barry put a hand on Wally’s shoulder. “Walls why don’t you go get something to eat.”

 

“But I-“ He recognized the command in Barry’s body language and nodded. “Ok.” Wally left at a noticeably slower pace when than when he entered. 

 

“We have to do something,” Wonder Woman reiterated. “How many more people have to die before we intervene?”

 

“And do what?!” Barry demanded. “Green Arrow already said no prison can hold him. We’d have to keep him sedated. Heavily sedated for the rest of his life.” Batman clenched his fist and growled low in his throat. Everyone took an involuntary step back. Nightwing may have….but the idea of drugging his son, locking him up, and throwing away the key seemed….terrible. “And we have the government to worry about.” 

 

“The government?” Damian asked. Once again, everyone looked at them like they’d forgotten the brothers were there. 

 

“Maybe they should leave-“

 

“They stay,” Batman growled. 

 

“Of course!”

 

“What does the government have to do with this?” Superman asked tiredly. 

 

“Everything. What do you think they’re going to say after this? Former child hero, the first Boy Wonder going rogue? I can already see the headline’s Godfrey will be spouting! Batman’s Son Commits Massacre! Nightwing Becomes Mass Murderer!

 

“Is there a point?” Superman was a little worried about one of the four bats in the room killing the speedster. Possibly all of them. 

 

“You guys know the garbage he’s always spouting about us! What do you think he’s going to do with this? People are going to start believing those things he says!”

 

“We can’t think like that.”

 

“You can’t deny the damage this will do to our reputation. We protect the world, but we couldn’t stop one of our own kids from doing unspeakable crimes. Look at his body count right now. He’s in the hundreds! The government won’t be satisfied with him just being locked up.” 

 

Wonder Woman narrowed her eyes. “What’re you suggesting? That the government will want us to kill Nightwing? Even if we’ve all sworn off killing?”

 

“If we don’t do it they’ll probably put him in front of a firing squad or strap him to a lethal injection table themselves!” Batman leapt out of his chair, hands aiming for Flash’s throat. Superman tackled the Dark Knight and Wonder Woman shoved Flash out of the way. 

 

“Batman stop!” Superman said. “Calm down or we’ll sedate you!” Batman stopped struggling and Superman let him up. “Flash, why don’t you go see Wally.” 

 

“Right,” Flash said, He sped out before someone could try to kill him again. 

 

“He’s right though,” Wonder Woman said as Batman sat back down. Superman put a restraining hand on his shoulder. “The public will demand blood for what’s happened.”

 

“We’ll deal with that when it gets to it,” Superman said. “In the mean time we monitor the situation-“

 

“And let innocent people die.” 

 

The Man of Steel sighed. “Do you have a better plan?” Wonder Woman shook her head. “Didn’t think so.” 

 

— Whoever Fights Monsters — 

 

The sun was low on the buildings as Nightwing looked out over Gotham. “Time to get take out the top of the list,” he said. He waited until ti was almost dark and swiped down into the street. His sudden presence turned heads. People whispered and some started running away. News of Nightwing’s rampage was getting around. He took out three wing-dings and threw them. Four people went down; three of them clutching the weapons sticking out of their necks. People screamed and started running. Nightwing just walked on calmly past them, heading into the Gotham police department. He walked in the front door and all movement stopped. Everyone stared at the vigilante standing at the edge of the bullpen. Nightwing’s eyes traveled to Commissioner Gordon, who was standing on the stairs in the back of the room. The Commissioner’s eyes were wide as he took in the sight of the bloodied hero. Before he could warn his men not to make any sudden movement, one of them rushed Nightwing. The vigilante reacted accordingly and sliced the man’s neck open with a wing-ding. He took the cop’s gun as he fell and pointed it at the room. 

 

“Don’t!” Gordon warned, but his men didn’t listen. They pulled their guns and all hell broke loose. Nightiwing launched himself into the air as the officers shot at him. He started shooting back, taking them out with deadly accuracy. “Hold your fire! Hold your fire!” Gordon jumped as a wing-ding buried itself in the neck of the officer to his left and then the one to his right. He fell back and could only watch in shock as his men were gunned down. The shooting finally stopped, but the only one still standing was Nightwing. He ran across the desks to the stairs. Gordon flinched as the heorstood over him, fresh blood dripping onto his face from Nightwing’s hair. 

 

“Evening Commissioner,” Nightwing said, gently pressing the wing-ding against the man’s carotid artery. 

 

“E-evening Nightwing,” Gordon replied. “I- How can I help you?”

 

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to kill you.”

 

“Oh…good.” He let out a grunt in surprise when Nightwing grabbed him by the collar and hauled him to his feet. “Let’s go.”

 

“Where?”

 

“The roof.” Gordon could feel the wing-ding pressing into the back of his neck. “You’re going to turn on the Bat signal.”

 

— Whoever Fights Monsters — 

 

“Oh no,” Superman breathed, upon checking the news. Not that any of it was good, but he needed to stay updated on Nightwing’s…progress. 

 

“What?” Wonder Woman asked. 

 

“Bat signal.” The bats all looked up. The Gotham news was showing a sot of the art signal shining in the sky. 

 

Tim frowned. “Do you think he’s attacking Gotham now?”

 

“That or it’s a trap,” Batman told them. 

 

“For who?”

 

“Me.”

 

Everyone looked at him. “You?” Superman asked. “Why you?”

 

“Who else would it be for?”

 

That was a good point. “We don’t know that for sure. For now you should stay-“ He stopped as the computer beeped with an incoming transmission. He figured it was one of the Leaguers reporting in, so his heart pretty much stopped when he heard Nightwing’s voice.

 

“This is a message for Batman,” NIghtwing said. His voice was making Superman’s skin crawl. He sounded….off. So off. “You haven’t come to the signal, so you need a little persuasion. I have 20 hostages here in the Gotham Police Department with me. Every time you’re not here, one of them dies. And when I run out of hostages, I’ll move on to Commissioner Gordon. Say hi Commissioner.” 

 

“H-Hi.”

 

“And just so we’re clear, I will make the Commissioner’s death as long and painful as possible. I’ll still make the pieces of him big enough for you to find though. Come to the station Batman. I’ll be waiting on the roof with Gordon. And just so you know I’m not bluffing-“ The sound of a gun shot echoed around the room, making everyone jump. “You now have 19 hostages worth of time.” The transmission ended and Superman honest to god, wanted to faint. No one said anything for several seconds. Batman stood up. 

 

“What’re you doing?!” Red Hood demanded as he, Red Robin, and Robin all stood up as well. 

 

“What do you think I’m doing?” Batman asked, sounding exhausted. “I’m going to him.”

 

“You’re not going alone,” Red Robin said. 

 

“Yes, I am. I won’t endanger you three.”

 

“Little late for that,” Robin said. 

 

Batman looked at Superman. “Lock them in a holding cell.” 

 

“You do realize we could escape that easily?” 

 

“Let us come!” Red Robin insisted. 

 

“No!” Batman snapped. 

 

Red Hood stepped up and crossed his arms. “Either you let us come, or we’ll follow.”

 

Batman sighed. “Fine.” He swept out of the room with his sons right behind him. His mind was racing. He didn’t know what to do. He’d ever felt this helpless and lost while wearing the cowl. Nightwing had to be stopped. Who knew how many people he would go after? What of he stopped going after people who wronged him and came after the League? Or their families? Lois? Or Iris? No, Batman knew he couldn’t allow that to happen. Deep down he knew how this might end. His hand shook, but he clenched it into a fist. ‘Stay focused,’ he thought sternly. ‘Focus on the mission.’ He pushed his emotions for his son aside as they reached the zetas. He authorized for Red Hood to get through and the four of them walked through. They came out in Gotham and took to the rooftops. They raced towards the Bat signal, feeling more like moths being lured to their deaths. They landed on the rooftop and Batman had to clench his jaw to see himself from gasping. Nightwing was covered in blood and other tissues Batman didn’t want to know about. Commissioner Gordon was kneeling on the roof next to Nightwing, hands bound behind him. He saw Batman and relief flood his eyes. 

 

“You came,” Nightwing said. 

 

“I did. Let the Commissioner and other hostages go.”

 

Nightwing noticed his brothers and his eyes narrowed. “What’re you three doing here?”

 

“Our jobs,” Red Hood muttered. 

 

“This is between me and Batman. I’ll give you guys one chance, leave.”

 

“Robin, go help the Commissioner and help the other hostages.”

 

“But-“

 

“Go!” Batman and the other two brothers yelled. Robin nodded stiffly and went over to Gordon. He helped the man stand up and quickly led him over to the stairs. Once Robin was gone, Batman leveled his gaze at his eldest. “Nightwing, why are you doing this?”

 

“Clarity. I finally, finally see things as they are!” He smiled.”Do you remember that thing the Joker was always telling us? What was it? Oh yeah. One bad day. One bad day is all it takes. Well I’ve had a thousand bad days. A thousand! If one bad day makes someone a Joker, what do you think a thousand does to you?!”

 

“Nightwing you know this isn’t right-“

 

“Right? Right?! What isn’t right is scum like them, making our lives miserable. Is it right for us to dedicate our lives to this cause and not make any progress?! So I killed Joker! Big deal! Even Jason’s said he’s filled cemeteries!” Jason didn’t think it would be a good idea to point out Dick had probably filled a couple cemeteries of his own at this point. “I’m just doing what has to be done! I’m cleaning up the streets! I’m fixing all this damage that you refuse to acknowledge!” Jason felt like he’d just been slapped. Was this how crazy he sounded to everyone else? “I’ve been going through and getting rid of everyone who’s ruined my life, Zucco. Catalina. Joker. Drug dealers. The cops who ignored the corruption and crimes. All of them. And who dos you think is at the top of the list?”

 

“Me.”

 

Nightwing started clapping. “The World’s Greatest Detective ladies and gentlemen.”

 

“What has Batman done?!” Red Robin demanded. 

 

“Done?! He didn’t save them! He was there that night and he just let them fall!”

 

Batman felt his heart shatter as understanding dawned. “Your parents.” 

 

Nightwing nodded. “You let my parents die. You made me a crime fighter when I was 9! You fired me! Ignored me! I was captured, tortured, beaten, betrayed, hunted, cornered, raped, drugged, manipulated, scarred! And where were you?! Did you come save me?! Did you try to protect me at all?!” 

 

Batman swallowed. “No. I didn’t.” He closed his eyes for a moment. “I’m sorry Nightwing.”

 

“You should be.” 

 

He started pacing, scratching absently at he dried blood on his skin. Red Robin looked at Batman. “What’re we going to do?”

 

“You two are going to leave,” Batman said quietly. “One thing has to be done here and I need to do it alone.” Red Hood’s head snapped in his direction. 

 

“You’re not serious.”

 

“Unless you see another way.”

 

“Let me do it,” Hood said. “I have blood on my hands already.” 

 

Red Robin snorted. “Like you can take him alone.”

 

“Shut it.”

 

“Stop,” Batman commanded. “Leave. Both of you.”

 

“We’re not going anywhere,” Red Robin said. “You’ll need help to take him down.” 

 

“Are you sure?”

 

Red Hood nodded and sighed. “Let’s do this.” The three of them rushed Nightwing, hoping to take him by surprise. Nightwing dodged Red Robin, who’d reached him first. He grabbed his brother by the cape and threw him to the ground. He then immediately ducked under Batman and kicked Red Hood in the chest. Red Robin rolled away to get out from under Batman and Nightwing’s feet. Batman, meanwhile, was trying to pin Nightwing down. Nightwing flipped put of the way and threw wing-dings at them. Batman dodged easily, pulling bat-a-rangs from his utility belt. Red Robin knocked them out of the air with his bo staff and tried to come at Nightwing from the other side. Nightiwng blocked a punch from Batman and hear Red Robin coming up behind him. He jumped up and flipped over the Dark Knight, allowing Red Robin to hit him. Red Hood punched Nightwing in the face, but Nightwing pulled out his escrima sticks and electrocuted Hood. Batman grabbed Nightwing from behind and pulled him to the ground. Nightwing flipped an escrima sticks around and electrocuted Batman in the neck. He flipped back and summersaulted away while Batman was momentarily dazed. Red Robin jumped on him, swinging his bo staff at Nightwing’s head. Nightwing jumped up and tried to trip Red Robin. Red Robin jumped up though, coming down on NIghtwing’s back. Nightwing dropped to the ground, dropping his body onto the younger man’s. The wind was knocked out of Red Robin, but he wrapped his arms around Nightwing’s neck. Batman grabbed Nightwing while he was momentarily down and punched him. 

 

“You alive?” Red Hood asked Red Robin, stopping beside him for a moment. 

 

“Mhm,” Red Robin grunted. “He’s too good.”

 

“Yeah. Golden Boy certainly has some moves.”

 

“How’re we going to stop him?”

 

Red Hood thought about it was they watched Nightwing and Batman going at it. Nether one was letting up, or pulling punches. They had to finish this. Batman seemed to get them seem idea because he suddenly tackled Nightwing by the waist. He got his arms around his son’s and jerked him to his feet. “Red Hood!” Batman snapped. Hood pulled out one of his guns and raised it. He pointed it at Nightwing as Batman tightened his grip. Nightiwng jerked back and forth, trying to get free. “Hood! Do it now!” Red Hood realized his hands were shaking. He tried to force himself to look away form his older brother, who was currently jerking around wildly like a rabid animal. “Red Hood!” Nightwing suddenly froze like he'd just seen Red Hood. He looked Hood in the eyes and Red Hood closed his. He pulled the trigger and the gun shot made him flinch. He opened his eyes just in time to see Nightwing’s body jerk back with the force of the bullet and fall limply into Batman’s arms. 

 

Red Robin got up, wanting to go to Batman, but changed course when he saw Red Hood fall to his knees. He stopped beside him carefully. “Are you ok?”

 

Red Hood nodded. He stood up on shaking legs, ignoring his gun. He never took his eyes off Nightwing, who was draped on the ground. Batman knelt beside him, gently brushing his hair back. He pulled back Nightwing’s mask, revealing the life-less blue eyes that stared up at him. He buried the feeling of neasea and gently closed NIghtwing’s eyes. He replaced the mask and picked up his son. Red Robin and Red Hood stopped in front of him. “Go make sure the hostages are ok. I want you two and Robin back in the Bat cave.” The two nodded and ran to the stirs. Down in the station, they found Robin being surprisingly kind and moving the dead bodies of the cops. 

 

Red Robin froze. “Did….did he do this?”

 

Commissioner Gordon nodded. “Is he…?”

 

“He won’t be a problem anymore,” Red Hood assured him. 

 

Gordon nodded, feeling as though that couldn’t really be counted as a victory. He turned to go radio other precincts and make sure Nightwing’s rampage had been contained to their station alone. 

 

“Robin,” Red Robin said. “Let’s go. The Commissioner has this.” Robin nodded and followed the older two. Red Robin let him go ahead. As they walked towards the stairs he noticed how the civilians moved away from them in fear. He felt his stomach twist, but didn’t say anything. This was a problem for another day. The thee of them left from the roof, using their grappling hooks to make their way to the zeta tube. Robin went on, leaving the other two behind. Red Robin authorized Red Hood to get through and followed right behind him. They walked out into a silent Batt cave. Robin was no where to be seen, probably taking his suit off. Red Robin took off his mask and found Batman sitting at the Bat computer. “Where’s Alfed?”

 

“Upstairs.” There was a short silence. “You three should go to bed. It’s late.” Tim figured trying to argue with Bruce right now would be useless, so he nodded. He was exhausted and just wanted throw himself into bed and wake up in a world where this night never happened. He went to get changed. “Hood.” Jason took off his mask, having already take his helmet off. 

 

“What?”

 

“I want to….apologize.”

 

Jason blinked. ‘Hell is freezing over,’ he decided. “Why?”

 

“For making you…..you being the one to….” 

 

Jason’s eyes flicked over to the med alcove, where Nigtwing’s body was laying on a bed. “It’s fine.”

 

“No it’s not.”

 

“No, but someone had to.”

 

“It should’ve been me. This was my fault.”

 

Jason shook his head, “It was all of our faults Bruce. Besides, my hands are already drenched as you’ve so often told me. What’s a little more?” He left before the conversation could continue. He paused momentarily when he passed the display case with his Robin suit. Somehow he figured his place as Bruce’s greatest failure had been replaced, and he wasn’t happy about it. He turned away and went upstairs to brood alone in his old room. When he got upstairs he saw Damian coming out of Dick’s room. “What’re you doing Demon Brat?”

 

Damian glared half-heartedly. The narrowing if his eyes did little to hide how red and watery they looked. “None of your business Todd.” He turned away quickly, hiding whatever was in his hands. Jason frowned and went inside. The room was mostly empty since Dick didn’t live there, but some remnants of his life at the manor remained. Jason heard someone come in and rolled his eyes.

 

“Does everyone want to come in here?” he asked Tim. 

 

“I just came to get something,” Tim said quietly. 

 

“What?” Tim shrugged and looked around. He went to the closet and grabbed one of Dick’s sweaters. “A sweater? Really?”

 

Tim shrugged, not taking Jason’s bait for an argument. “I just wanted something to remember him by before Bruce….you know…”

 

Jason nodded. No doubt Bruce would lock the door to Dick’s room the way he’d locked Jason’s after his death. He watched Tim leave, then went over to Dick’s dresser. He opened one of the drawers. Snooping in his brother’s room upon first living here meant he knew there everything was. He pulled out a folded up piece of paper that Dick had apparently forgotten about. Jason shut the drawer and walked towards the door. He stopped in the doorway and looked back. It occurred to him the 8 year old that had lived here had had no idea what he’d grow up to be. The Flying Grayons poster in his hand suddenly felt very heavy. He blinked and tried to swallow the lump in his throat. “Bye Golden Boy,” he whispered as he left, shutting the door firmly behind him. 

 

— Whoever Fights Monsters — 

 

Bruce finished letting the other Leaguers know that the situation was…handled and sat back. He pulled off the cowl as exhaustion crept in. This night felt like it had been a week long. He sat in the silence of the cave for a few minutes before he got up. He walked slowly to where he’d set down Dick’s body. He stopped beside it, suddenly feeling like his heart would explode from the pain. He reached out and ruffled his son’s black hair. He peeled the mask off. If he ignored the bullet hole in his head, it almost looked like he was sleeping. He looked at peace at least. Bruce fell to his knees and rested face in the mattress, right next to Nightwing’s hand. He gripped the hand like it was a life line. “I’m so sorry Dick,” he sobbed, crushing the NIghtwing mask with his other hand. His cried in a way he hadn’t since he was 8. “I’m so sorry.”


End file.
